The Commonwealth Times; Aug. 19, 2020

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VOL. 62, NO. 1 AUGUST 19, 2020

POLICE REFORM CHANGE COMES FROM THE STREETS, GENERAL ASSEMBLY, VCU CAMPUS

Photo by Andrew Ringle Photo illustration by Andy Caress

State legislators to address community demands as civil unrest continues ANDREW RINGLE Executive Editor

M

ORE THAN 100 PROTESTERS MARCHED DOWN the hot asphalt of Broad Street on Tuesday, blocking two lanes of traffic and facing off with officers from VCU and Virginia State Police. “Whose streets? Our streets,” they chanted as some in the crowd wove flags and handmade signs bearing the name of Marcus-David Peters.

The demonstration, the latest in a summer of protests in Richmond, unfolded just steps away from a Virginia General Assembly special session expected to address the very issues surrounding police violence that brought together the crowd on Broad Street.

See PROTEST on page 2

2 The Commonwealth Times

Stories of the week

national: The Democratic National Convention started the process to formally nominate Joe Biden as the party’s presidential candidate. international: COVID-19 cases surpass 22 million worldwide.

PROTEST

Around 100 demonstrators gather outside of the Stuart C. Siegel Center on Aug. 18 as the House of Delegates convenes inside. Photo by Andrew Ringle

Protesters visit Siegel Center as House of Delegates convenes for special session Continued from front page

Peters, a Black high school biology teacher and VCU alumnus, was killed by a Richmond police officer in 2018. Demonstrators in Richmond continue to demand the reopening of Peters’ case, among other social justice reforms. Protests began in the city in late May, following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody.

Delegates met at VCU’s Stuart C. Siegel Center on Tuesday instead of the Virginia State Capitol for social distancing.

Meanwhile, the Senate congregated at the Science Museum of Virginia. The House voted on two resolutions affecting House procedures during the special session.

• HR 515: authorizes the House to hold virtual sessions. Passed House 55-Y, 43-N • HR 516: approves use of House funds to cover the salaries of temporary employees, incidental expenses and per diem for delegates. Passed House 55-Y, 42-N, 1-A

The House also passed HJR 5006, which would limit legislation that may be voted on during the special session, but the joint resolution was killed by the state Senate.

The special session was called by Gov. Ralph Northam to address COVID-19 and related shortfalls in the commonwealth’s budget. He also wanted the legislature to address criminal justice and police reform.

“Since the COVID-19 crisis evolved into both the public health crisis and the police brutality crisis, the lawmakers are using this as an opportunity to address criminal justice reform issues,” said Alex Keena, an assistant professor of political science at VCU. Keena said he expects issues related to marijuana decriminalization to gain bipartisan support during the special session, while legislation concerning police reform will receive pushback from Republicans.

“The Republicans are still wrestling with who they are and what they stand for,” Keena said. “The Democrats have to perform.

They have the majority.”

Keena said many of the issues legislators are tackling this session, such as police

reform and the commonwealth’s budget, are likely going to draw “a lot of attention” to Virginia politics.

“One of the things that’s interesting is, it sounds like everyone’s sort of bringing their own ideas to the table,” Keena said.

Sen. Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, who sponsored two bills concerning marijuana and police reform, was charged with damaging a Confederate monument during protests in her city, Portsmouth Police Chief Angela Greene said during a news conference Monday. The state senator faces charges of conspiracy to commit a felony and “injury to a monument.”

Lucas’ proposed bills include SB 5024, which would allow Virginia’s attorney general to file civil suits against law enforcement officials believed to be depriving people of constitutional “rights, privileges or immunities.” Lucas’ SB 5029 lowers marijuana possession from a primary offense to a secondary offense and prohibits law enforcement from searching a person, place or thing “solely on the basis of the odor of marijuana” Keena said the timing of Lucas’ charges before the start of the special session is “mind-boggling.”

“If something were to happen to her [Lucas], I mean, she’s the president pro tempore of the Senate,” Keena said.

“That would throw a real big wrench in what’s going on because she’s been a huge consensus builder.”

House delegates will meet virtually for the remainder of the special session, despite Republican opposition to the change. House Minority Leader Todd Gilbert, R-Shenandoah, said in a statement that Tuesday was “a dark day for the House of Delegates.”

“With a single vote, they [Democrats] declared that they have no need to meet in public, they have no desire to receive public input, and they have no intention of changing that practice anytime soon,” Gilbert said. “Our constituents deserve to have the business of the House done in public.”

Live streams and recordings of the House of Delegates and state Senate sessions are available at virginiageneralassembly.gov.

Wed. August 19, 2020 3 KATHARINE DEROSA Staff Writer

protests, calling bike marshals, medics and mutual aid integral parts of protests.

As the semester starts, Mikey Ramlogan said bail students return to a differfunds and sit-ins to protest ent Richmond; one where evictions in Richmond mumonuments to the Confedtually benefit members of eracy have been torn down, the community. and the words “Black Lives “If no one’s going to Matter” are spray-painted protect us, we’ll protect us,” across the boarded-up city.

Mikey Ramlogan said.

Various Richmond monDemonstrators gathered at the Compass on Monuments honoring Confedday, the first day of classes erate generals have been for many, to protest against taken down during the VCU Police. About 100 protests, including those of students participated, and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson two students held up a banand J.E.B Stuart. Howevner with a link to a petition er, Charles believes proto defund the university’s On June 1, while students were away, police deployed tear gas without warning on protesters, children and animals at testers’ demands still have police department. not been met. the Robert E. Lee statue. Photo by Jon Mirador One of the protesters, “It’s one less thing to Nijah Green, a sophomore look at, but it hasn’t brought double majoring in political any systemic change,” science and gender, sexuCharles said. ality and women’s studies, Taylor Maloney, presisaid she came to the prodent-elect of the Student test to hear people’s stories Government Association and support the demands VCU Student Power created an on“VCU students are part of the RVA at VCU, was arrested by set forth by student organization VCU line petition for these demands. Members community and make sure it is your respon- RPD at a protest in late July with Charles.

Student Power.

Mikki Charles, Mikey Ramlogan and Ste- sibility to get involved and educate yourself Mikey Ramlogan said he believes VCUPD “It’s like a whole change for me, because ven Ramlogan said the organization also on what’s ongoing in Richmond,” Steven will arrest student protesters during I’ve never lived through something like supports the demands put forth by com- Ramlogan said. the school year. this,” Green said. “I think it was really im- munity protesters, such as re-opening the Protests against police brutality and rac“It’s not if, it’s when and how selectively portant that I get to see this.”

Marcus-David Peters case, defunding the ism have been taking place in Richmond VCU does that,” Mikey Ramlogan said.

Richmond police and dropping all charges since George Floyd died with a knee on his Charles said she thinks VCUPD and the Demands of Student Power at VCU against protesters. neck in Minneapolis police custody on May RPD will have to be more lenient in terms • Defund VCUPD Steven Ramlogan and other members 25, sparking a nationwide revitalization of of force and arrests at protests.

• Release the VCUPD budget of VCU Student Power have been protest- the Black Lives Matter movement.

“They can’t come off as strong as they • Remove the LiveSafe App that allows ing throughout the summer. He said the “It’s been really great to see how much have, otherwise they’re going to face a lot students to report tips to VCUPD organization is designed to make VCU a the Richmond community has come out more backlash,” Charles said, “and not from • Ban and remove U.S. Immigrations and more equitable, inclusive and accessible uni- and has been a part of this,” Charles said. students, from parents.” versity for students, community members, The three members stressed the imCustoms Enforcement from campus faculty and staff. portance of community leaders within the

VCU activists: students have a ‘responsibility’ to get involved

Eviction hold nears end, families demand relief EDUARDO ACEVEDO News Editor More than 50 protesters gathered at the Science Museum of Virginia on Monday to demand an eviction moratorium and an allocation of $1 billion in rent relief in the commonwealth.

A majority of the crowd was made of Latino families and clergy members who spoke to the crowd concerning the eviction crisis happening during COVID-19, with the state’s moratorium set to end on Sept. 7.

Translators repeated speeches given by clergy and community members in Spanish for those in attendance with their families. Children held up signs saying “desalojos son violentas” and “ayuda para la renta,” meaning “evictions are violent” and “help with rent.”

According to a report by RVA Eviction Lab on Tuesday, there have been more than 54,000 eviction filings since January, with 19,000 of those cases resulting in an eviction.

Steve Fischbach, litigation director at the Virginia Poverty Law Center, told WTVR in July that there were around 11,000 eviction cases scheduled in Virginia at the time.

Edgar Lara, who volunteers with Sin Barreras — an organization in Charlottesville dedicated to helping Spanish-speakers and immigrants access public services — said there is little benefit from putting families out of their homes.

“This is not going to help us in the future,” Lara said, “this is going to create so many more problems.”

Lara said Sin Barreras’ work has shifted recently to support those in the Latino community who have been affected

by COVID-19.

“In our work with the community, we see all the struggles, especially through the pandemic,” Lara said. “The majority of our

Community members, Latino families and clergy members protest against evictions on Aug. 18. Photo by Wessam Hazaymeh work has become pandemic response.”

Gov. Ralph Northam proposed an allocation of $88 million toward providing affordable housing during Tuesday’s General Assembly special session. The additional funding would allow for an extension to the commonwealth’s eviction moratorium.

Elaine Poon, managing attorney for the Legal Aid Justice Center in Charlottesville, said protesters must “push back” on anyone who says an eight-month moratorium is too long.

“Invisible evictions can leave broken communities, gentrification and displacement,” Poon said. “Evictions are racial violence.”

Amar Amonette, an imam at the Islamic Center of Virginia, attended the rally in support of the “dignity” of human life and the right to housing.

“When someone is made homeless, our whole society is sick,” Amonette said. “How can I sleep in my home, in my bed, when my fellow human beings, my brothers and sisters, are in the streets?”

Amonette said the current eviction moratorium does not provide enough time to help people with their eviction proceedings.

“It’s just not possible,” Amonette said.

“This is not going to end in a couple of

weeks. It’s going to get worse and worse, all through the fall and through the winter.”

Donte McCutchen, a member of Clergy Action RVA and pastor at Love Cathedral Community Church, said he was there to “defend the defenseless.”

McCutchen said it’s important for people of faith to be present at the anti-eviction protests.

“This doesn’t just affect one person, it affects many people,” McCutchen said, “but oftentimes we know it affects Black and brown people the most.”

4 The Commonwealth Times

VCU policing model to adapt civilian review board SANJANA RAVULAPALLI Contributing Writer

In an update to its public safety model announced on Friday, VCU will transition from policing the community to “equitably and more holistically fostering the safety and well-being of every individual” on campus.

The new model will start with the creation of a safety and well-being advisory committee, which will be made up of civilians and will operate independently from VCU Police.

Jed Baul, a senior international relations major and former student government senator, is not satisfied with VCU’s response.

Baul said the new safety model is neither sincere nor in the interest of students, but rather a response from the university regarding its failure to ensure “all students, including those who have been marginalized, are safe.”

“In other words,” Baul said, “they’re only trying to wipe their hands clean and save themselves at our expense.”

Baul criticized VCU Police and President Michael Rao for focusing on property damage, rather than the harm being caused by police forces in Richmond.

On the night of July 25, protests caused $100,000 in damage to Monroe Park campus, according to estimates from the university. The following night, police detained at least a dozen people in and near Monroe Park after they ordered around 50 demonstrators to disperse from the park.

“Changing things for the better starts with actually caring about the students and community and giving them the resources they need,” Baul said, “not asking to identify and arrest protesters.”

The advisory committee will be cochaired by Andrew Daire, dean of the ANYA SCZERZENIE Contributing Writer VCU launched a temporary cross-campus shuttle service for the fall semester to help students travel between campuses during COVID-19.

The shuttle service is run out of three charter-style buses that transport students between Cabell Library and two MCV locations: One Capitol Square and McGuire Hall.

Third-year student Madelena Eifert said she’s glad the university made an effort to help students with transportation after shutting down the Campus Connector, which stopped service in 2019 after the GRTC pilot program began.

“There’s not many other modes of transportation you can take in the city, if you don’t want to walk a long distance,” Eifert said, “unless you have a car.”

The shuttle service, which began on Friday, operates on weekdays from 6 a.m. to midnight, with buses arriving every 20 minutes. Buses can be tracked through the Ridesystems app or on ramride.ridesystems.net.

The bus’ social-distancing guidelines allow 24 students or fewer per bus and require face masks to be worn at all times. The VCU Parking and Transportation website includes a document outlining the shuttle’s COVID-19 safety guidelines.

Students with VCU IDs can ride the Pulse and GRTC buses for free, and face masks are required to ride. GRTC’s website suggests that passengers only make essential trips and social distance where possible, but there is no strict passenger limit on GRTC buses.

Third-year student Kendall Gehring believes the shuttle bus will be safe as long as everyone follows the mask and social distancing rules.

“I feel like the university can more strongly regulate whether people are

Sophomore political science major Josh Hartt, who serves as the recruitment chair for College Republicans at VCU, does not believe a committee will be effective.

“What we kind of expect to have out of this committee, is a whole lot of words and not a lot of actual implementable policy,” Hartt said.

H o w e v e r, H a r t t thinks that transparent metrics are a good idea and would be the only change he would make to the VCUPD. “I think definitely transparency of information is great anywhere, the more peoVCU Police guard the Stuart C. Siegel Center during a protest ple know about what’s on Aug. 18. Photo by Hannah Eason going on behind the scenes, the better they School of Education, and VCU Health can understand both perspectives of the System’s Chief of Health Impact Sheryl situation,” Hartt said. “Establishing a daGarland. Both have national expertise in tabase and more transparency between social justice and health equity. the VCUPD and anyone who wants VCUPD will create a metrics dash- to know about the VCUPD is a good board available to the general public by use of resources.”

October. The safety and well-being adviAs part of the university’s public safety sory committee will maintain the dash- reform, students no longer need to contact board and publish key performance indi- VCU Police for after-hours mental health cators, which are determined by feedback emergencies. University Counseling Serfrom the community. The dashboard will vices is also available on weekends and include officer complaints, department use after hours for mental health emergenof force and resolution, random body-worn cies at 804-828-6200. Students can speak video camera reviews and excessive use-of- with a trained professional, day or night, force complaints. at this number.

VCU Police will be trained for crisis intervention, de-escalation and impartial policing practices through implicit-bias-awareness. The department also will participate in the One Mind Campaign, an international program that aims to improve police responses toward people with mental health conditions. Officers will be required to follow restrictive use-of-force policies as well as report excessive use-offorce incidents.

Junior English major Lina Romero said it’s important to have unarmed professionals who are properly trained and equipped to communicate with those suffering from mental health conditions respond to related calls, rather than police.

“People who aren’t experienced with differently-abled people don’t always know how to handle them,” Romero said.

Romero said the changes to the safety model sound good in theory, but that she’d like to see them be properly enforced.

“I mean it sounds good on paper, but actions speak louder than words,” Romero said. “I don’t really trust that until I actually see some progress.”

According to the release from VCU administration, students and VCU community members can share feedback and ideas on the new safety model though a Google form sent in the email, or by contacting safetymodel@vcu.edu.

Based on the feedback they receive, cochairs will determine committee membership in early September. Once a committee is established, students will receive updates about the new safety model, guidance for policing strategies and initiatives, and a plan for community involvement. Updates will be posted online at safetymodel.vcu.edu.

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GAMBLES HILL PARK Infographic by Andy Caress

VCU brings back cross-campus bus routes for fall semester following protocols on the shuttle than on the Pulse,” Gehring said.

The temporary service will stop giving rides Nov. 24 when the semester ends.

Freshman pre-med student Jayden Watkins said that because of his major, he may have to take a bus between campuses in the future.

“I’m not really nervous about going on the Pulse because of how strict the mask policy is,” Watkins said. “I would say the biggest benefit of riding the Pulse over the shuttle is that if you miss a bus, the next one comes in 10 minutes.

It’s very reliable.”

Although Watkins has not ridden the VCU shuttle, he says he is glad it exists.

“Having that accessibility, being able to go somewhere far away, is a great thing to have as a resource.” Watkins said.

Wed. August 19, 2020 5

Stat of the week

Former men’s basketball player Briante Weber was named Canadian Elite Basketball League Clutch Player of the Year after starring for the Hamilton Honey Badgers this summer.

Junior Lynea Gregory started 12 games last year. CT file photo

Center, in what coach Mike Rhoades c alled their own “bubble.”

Rhoades said the team’s main priority over the summer was being safe while working out.

“When we were on the court or in the weight room, everybody was wearing masks, sanitizing everything and following the protocol,” Rhoades said.

Rhoades said more than 80 COVID-19 tests were conducted on players and staff on the men’s and women’s basketball teams with one person testing positive.

Since practices began in July, they were voluntary for the program, but Rhoades said that every player was in the facility at one point during the summer.

Bean and Rhoades both said the students’ return to campus may present a challenge to their coronavirus protocols, but that they believe they will still be effective. Bean said it’s more than just her team working together to minimize the risk of the virus –– it’s everyone on campus.

“We need people, whether it’s a student-athlete on my team or whether it’s a chemistry major or biology major,” Bean said, “it doesn’t matter. We need the VCU community locked in and committed for the long haul.”

PRACTICING THROUGH COVID-19: VCU field hockey, basketball teams adapt NOAH FLEISCHMAN Sports Editor Sitting to the side of a water cooler on Cary Street Field was a bottle of hand sanitizer. One by one, field hockey players squeezed some of the liquid disinfectant onto their palms and between their fingers before filling their water bottles — and again once they were done.

As the only fall sport to return to the field before classes began on Aug. 17, field hockey made some adjustments to its routine to practice with minimal surface contact. Team equipment became a responsibility of the coaching staff, who now corral hundreds of balls after practice.

“I think myself and my two assistant coaches are a lot more tired than normal because we don’t let our girls touch any of the equipment,” coach Stacey Bean said. “We’re moving everything, we’re collecting everything, so it’s a lot of moving pieces for us.”

The full field hockey team was able to resume practice on Aug. 10 since they can space themselves out on the field. Bean said her players and staff felt comfortable being back on the field, despite COVID-19.

For Bean, safety is a top priority under normal circumstances and she said it hasn’t changed during the pandemic.

“When I talk to a recruit’s parents, I tell them ‘Hey, we’re going to take care of your child,’” Bean said. “This is a big test to that.”

The team is practicing on the field for 20 hours each week until Oct. 9. Then they will scale back to eight hours a week.

On top of using hand sanitizer and restricting contact with equipment, Bean said the team sanitizes each player’s stick handle before and after practice.

The decision to practice wasn’t made by the athletic department, but left up to the team. After five months of not holding a stick on the field, Bean said the players were excited to return.

Bean said the athletic department didn’t take any funding away from the program, something she said “speaks volumes about the administration.”

When I talk to a recruit’s parents, I tell them ‘Hey, we’re going to take care of your child.’ This is a big test to that.”

Stacey Bean, field hockey coach The rest of fall sports, including volleyball and soccer, returned to practice on Aug. 17.

Men’s and women’s basketball practiced throughout the summer for four hours a week at VCU’s Basketball Developmental

Sophomore Bones Hyland played in every game last season. CT file photo

Women’s tennis names Segnini as new coach NOAH FLEISCHMAN Sports Editor

Vivian Segnini was a graduate assistant during the 2018-19 season.

Photo courtesy of VCU Athletics

For the first time in 30 years, a new face will lead the women’s tennis program after Vivian Segnini was named coach on Aug. 18.

Segnini replaces Paul Kostin, who retired earlier this year after three decades at the helm.

“She stood out during her time working for Coach Paul Kostin by her ability to connect with our student-athletes,” said Ed McLaughlin, athletic director, said in a statement. “She brings a global recruiting portfolio that fits well with our program and a deep knowledge of teaching the

game of tennis.”

Segnini was a graduate assistant under Kostin during the 2018-19 season, helping the team to an Atlantic 10 championship. She earned her degree in sport leadership from VCU’s Center of Sport Leadership in 2019.

“I’m honored for the opportunity to lead the VCU Women’s Tennis program,” Segnini said in a statement.

The Sao Carlos, Brazil, native was the head coach at Winthrop, her alma mater, last season. She previously was an assistant coach with the Eagles, helping the team to its first NCAA tournament victory.

6 The Commonwealth Times

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Wed. August 19, 2020 7

On this day

In 2008, Lady Gaga released her debut album, “The Fame,” which later won album of the year at the 2009 Grammy awards.

‘ROCKFISH GAP’: VCUarts freshman steps into podcasting world during pandemic

“Rockfish Gap” is a fictional investigative drama podcast and is produced by freshman cinema major Andrew Nguyen and others. Photo coutesy of Christian Heiche CLAIRE DARCY Contributing Writer

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hat started as a zero-budget passion project for a group of Northern Virginia teens during the state’s stay-at-home order has become an international chart-topper.

“Rockfish Gap” is a fictional investigative drama podcast created by a team of Falls Church students, including VCUarts freshman Andrew Nguyen.

Nguyen, a cinema major, knew he wanted to be involved in media production at a young age and didn’t believe that he needed to go to New York or Los Angeles to make it big in the entertainment industry. Being a long-time Virginia resident, he thought VCU would be a perfect fit for his passion.

“I think you can make it anywhere now these days, especially with the internet,” Nguyen said, “and Richmond always seemed like a really cool city.”

Nguyen is the show’s executive producer and one of three main writers. With a background in filmmaking, there was little he could work on due to social distancing restrictions. Then, brothers Colter and Charlie Adams reached out to get him involved in “Rockfish Gap.” “I’m glad I had this project because it’s like the closest thing I can get to filmmaking without actually having to go outside and make a film,” Nguyen said.

Nguyen said editing is his favorite step of the video-making process, which carried over to his role on the podcast. Each episode takes around two weeks to create, from writing the script to finalizing edits — which requires re-listening several times to check for errors, desired changes and audio quality.

“You want it to sound good on every device so you gotta listen to it on your phone … through a laptop speaker, through the best headphones you have, through bad headphones, ‘cause you never know what the audience is gonna listen through,” Nguyen said.

We never anticipated ‘Rockfish Gap’ would amount to more than a community passion project, so being featured on Apple’s New & Noteworthy section and coming close to a hundred thousand downloads in our first week was a complete shock.”

Colter Adams, co-creator of “Rockfish Gap” Named for the show’s setting, “Rockfish Gap” explores a case of four teens that have gone missing in Shenandoah National Park during COVID-19 and a journalist that investigates their story. Episodes have dropped every Wednesday since the series’ July 1 launch.

As the podcast’s creators, the Adams brothers say the show got its start during a late-night Zoom call with friends looking for a creative outlet.

The podcast production was restricted to online-only collaboration, but it allowed them to work with cast and crew members from across the commonwealth, including an actress that moved to Cambodia.

“I think that the medium really lends itself to working at a distance because making an audio drama is kinda like putting together a puzzle,” Colter Adams said.

Without sets, props or the ability to read lines with other actors, Natalie Ingalls, lead actress and voice of journalist Jessica Matthews, said that voice acting requires a lot of imagination.

“It’s almost harder because when you’re on stage or you’re on camera, you have not only your voice, but also your face and a context around you,” Ingalls said.

The podcast’s first season has eight episodes, the final of which is set to release on Aug. 26.

Ingalls and Nguyen will be finishing the finale while starting college. Provided each has a reliable internet connection and a quiet space to work, they said they aren’t concerned about completing the podcast and balancing their studies.

“I’m not a stranger to working under pressure and under time limits,” Nguyen said.

Each episode reaches an average audience of approximately 20,000 to 25,000 listeners, according to estimates by Adams and Nguyen. The show has made it to listeners across the globe, including in New Zealand, United Kingdom, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

“Rockfish Gap” was recently featured on Apple Podcasts’s New and Noteworthy section in the U.S. and Australia, and reached No. 2 and No. 3 on Canada’s Apple Podcast drama and fiction charts, respectively.

“We never anticipated ‘Rockfish Gap’ would amount to more than a community passion project, so being featured on Apple’s New & Noteworthy section and coming close to a hundred thousand downloads in our first week was a complete shock,” Colter Adams said in an email.

While the first season comes to its finale at the end of the month, the podcast’s creators anticipate that the story won’t end there. There are plans for season two, which they hope will come with an increased production budget and the ability to collaborate in-person.

Nguyen said he would like to release a behind-the-scenes producer’s podcast, and that his long-term dream for “Rockfish Gap” would be to develop it into a miniseries or film.

“Rockfish Gap” is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Youtube, as well as at the show’s website, rockfishgapshow.com.

The final episode of the show’s first season will premiere on Aug. 26.

Photo courtesy of Andrew Nguyen

8 The Commonwealth Times REBECCA ELROD Contributing Writer

Maymont Park. This is a socially-distanced outdoor event, where masks are not required but are strongly encouraged to be worn before and after the class. Attendees will need to bring their own mat.

VCU Recreational Sports also hosts weekly yoga classes inside Cary Street Gym and the MCV Campus Recreation Center. For more information, visit the RecSports website.

S

ocial distancing in Richmond doesn’t have to mean spending hours in your dorm –– you can still grab some popcorn at the local drive-in, go kayaking in the James River or mountain bike with fellow students.

All of the activities in this guide are virtual or take place outdoors. Follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines on how to protect yourself from COVID-19 with measures like social distancing and wearing a mask.

OUTDOOR AND AT-HOME FLICKS The Goochland Drive-In Theater shows double features of the latest movies in addition to classics like “The Empire Strikes Back.” Tickets must be bought online in advance and go on sale every Monday at 7 p.m.

The theater, which is a 30-minute drive from campus, limits capacity and maintains a 6-foot distance between each car, according to its website. Patrons can also watch from outside of their cars, as long as social distancing is maintained.

Admission: $20 per vehicle Address: 4344 Old Fredericksburg Road, Hadensville, Virginia Hours: Movies run Thursday to Sunday and typically start at 8:20 p.m.

Website: goochlanddriveintheater.com The Byrd Theatre offers a vast selection of movies to stream from home, varying each week. Current films include “Creem,” “H is for Happiness,” “Measure for Measure” and “John Lewis: Good Trouble.”

Admission: Pay what you can Address: 2201 Shields Lake Dr. Hours: Tuesday, Aug. 25 at 6-7 p.m.

Illustration by Catherine Lee

BACK TO CAMPUS: Social distance at these 6 outdoor, virtual activities

Admission: $9.99 or $12 depending on the movie Website: byrdtheatre.org EXERCISING IN NATURE Through VCU’s Outdoor Adventure Program, or OAP, students can explore kayaking, bike tours and rock climbing on weekend day trips. Activities occuring throughout the week include stand-up paddle boarding and mountain biking.

Program coordinators transport gear and equipment to nearby trip locations, and participants are responsible for their own

transportation to the site. The OAP can provide bikes if needed.

Ventures begin near Cary Street Gym at the Outing Rental Center, where coordinators also teach bike maintenance and repair.

Starting point: 130 S. Linden St. Website: recsports.vcu.edu Residents can stretch at sunset during Community Yoga at the Maymont Children’s Farm.

Instructor Michelle Lee Landon will be hosting the last installment of this month’s weekly yoga sessions Tuesday at

EXPERIENCE ART FROM HOME The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts offers virtual tours for participants to explore exhibits from the comfort of home. Audio-guided tours allow audiences to pick from three art collections for free. “The Treasures of Ancient Egypt: Sunken Cities” explores ancient Egyptian cities, significant religious ceremonies and other aspects of Egyptian society. The narrator explains the meaning of each item in a way that places the listener in ancient Egypt, bringing together the past and the present.

Website: vmfa.museum The Institute for Contemporary Art hosts a hotline that allows callers to experience non-visual artistic content like poetry, songs and spoken word. Singers and writers from across the country contributed to the project’s first volume, which is voiced by interdisciplinary artist Autumn Knight.

Free Hotline: 1-844-NOT-Z00M (1-844-668-9006) Website: icavcu.org/1-844-not-z00m/

FABIAN FONTANEZ Contributing Writer Some freshmen with hands-on majors such as art or engineering are concerned about the lack of academic resources and course modality changes during the start of their college careers.

“At first, I expected everything to be really good, since VCU is one of the best art schools,” said freshman art foundation student Elise Corbin-Pollard. “It’ll be different now ‘cause there’s always updates about COVID and stuff we have to do to stay safe.”

The university’s studio spaces will remain open, with VCUarts providing safety protocols for sharing tools and equipment.

The university is also maintaining safety via physical distancing, mask requirements and daily health checks for students and staff during the fall semester.

Corbin-Pollard said she was reassured by the added safety measures, but is concerned about limited access to studios, art materials and other resources. She said she believes the art foundation program will be different with critiques occurring over Zoom.

“There’s probably a limited amount of resources for us now, ones they would’ve had for us if we were in person.” CorbinPollard said. “Not everyone has the amount of space they would have in a classroom.”

Video conferencing has become the new normal at orientations and other first-year events. Online platform RamsConnect hosts virtual mixers to help transfer and first-year students connect with clubs, organizations and Greek life on campus.

Freshman art foundation student Ariadna Perez said a disconnect between students and instructors will be inevitable during online classes. As a “visual learner,” she worries that without hands-on experience she will begin to lose focus and procrastinate.

“Everyone is worried, and they don’t know what’s going to happen,” Perez said,

Illustration by Claire Deely

VCU’s hands-on majors concerned about accessing art studios, resources “especially out-of-state kids seeing these VCUarts tours and now not being able to do these things promised before COVID. We’re worried about not being able to make our art.”

The university is keeping in-person classes small in size at 50 students or fewer, with classrooms and studio spaces allowing 36 square feet for each person. Still, Perez remains concerned about the personal instruction art students will miss during the fall semester.

“It’s kinda like watching YouTube videos, like you really don’t absorb much doing a tutorial which you don’t want to do,” Perez said. “You want to do more with your expression and go outside the box.”

VCU expanded its course modality options to adhere to health guidelines and

academic requirements. The deadline to cancel the university’s housing contract for the 2020-21 academic year was extended into July after many courses switched to an online or hybrid format.

According to an email sent to students in the Honors College, many students took advantage of the grace period and canceled their contracts. The additional space meant the university no longer needed to use the Graduate Richmond hotel as a housing option for honors students. Instead, students are residing in Gladding Residence Center or Cary & Belvidere.

Freshman bioinformatics major Samir Nader has experienced changes to his housing plans, now assigned to Cary & Belvidere instead of the Graduate. Due to course modality changes, he purchased a

reliable computer out of his personal funds that he says would’ve been used for tuition.

“I wish they could’ve given us more money and be more understanding of people’s situations to be more personal with each student’s lives and not so general,” Nader said.

Despite his expectations of having “an amazing and unorthodox college experience” changing tremendously, he still wishes to remain optimistic and understanding of VCU’s precautions and current plans for the fall semester.

“I have no doubt they’re trying to keep people happy, but there is a balance that you need to keep people safe,” Nader said. “It’s going to be hard to find that middle ground and sometimes you have to just settle. It is what it is.”

Wed. August 19, 2020 9

UPCOMING EVENTS See something

THURS. 8/20 ‘Flowers After 5’ at Lewis Ginter The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden allows guests to stroll the 50-acre gardens while enjoying live music as the sun goes down on Thursday evenings. Tickets are limited and available online only. Attendees are encouraged to bring their own chairs and blankets, and outside food is not permitted. For more information and to purchase tickets, visit the Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden website.

5-9 p.m., Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, 1800 Lakeside Ave. $14.

THURS. 8/20 Movies in the Outfield at The Diamond

The Diamond is hosting an ongoing movie night event on Thursdays and Saturdays. This Thursday, there will be a screening of “Ferris Buller’s Day Off.” For tickets and future screenings, visit the Richmond Flying Squirrels website or the event’s Facebook page.

Gates open at 6:35 p.m., The Diamond, 3001 N. Arthur Ashe Blvd. $8.

Do something Women gather at the Virginia Capitol building on International Women’s Day in March to celebrate the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Film still courtesy of Boedeker Films

Doc highlights Va. role in women’s suffrage during 19th Amendment’s centennial year IMAN MEKONEN Spectrum Editor

“We were really lucky in that sense that a lot of institutions that we worked with had digitized collections or had previously digitized collections for their suffrage exhibits,” McCann said. “So they already had a lot of resources they were able to share with us, that otherwise would have been impossible to access during a lockdown.”

The film takes a look at the prominent, Virginia-founded suffrage groups that organized in the early 1900s to advocate for women’s suffrage. It also addresses the racism and omission African Americans experienced from the movement and the lack of records indicating minority involvement.

“For understanding the role of African American women in supporting women’s suffrage, we just don’t have the records, or we haven’t been able to find those records,” said Barbara Batson, exhibitions coordinator at the Library of Virginia, in the film.

The Equal Suffrage L eague of Virginia and the Virginia branch of the Congressional Union for Women’s Suffrage were spotlighted in the film. The groups differed on their aggressiveness toward the call for change; The Equal Suffrage League organized in Washington D.C. and advocated for federal laws, such as the 19th

Amendment, and the Congressional Union focused on change at the state level.

Once the 19th Amendment was passed, the women’s suffrage movement often left out African Americans and included efforts to disenfranchise their votes with techniques such as poll taxes and literacy tests.

Maggie L. Walker and Ora Brown Stokes, two African American women from the Richmond area, saw disenfranchisement in their community and took measures to make voting easier. “[They] played a key role and kind of helped organize some black women to pass the barriers that were put in place to stop them from registering to vote,” McCann said.

Virginia voted against ratifying the 19th Amendment to the Constitution, but the film shows that organization and persistence from women in the state made a positive impact on the suffrage movement.

“The suffrage movement, even though it didn’t succeed on the ground here in Virginia,” said Karen Sherry, museum collections curator at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, “it did prepare a generation of women to feel that they can move forward and affect change.”

Women advocating in January for the Equal Rights Amendment flood the Downtown Richmond streets in the opening scene of “These Things Can Be Done: Women’s Suffrage in Virginia.” The next clip jumps to a march at the State Capitol on International Women’s Day, celebrating Virginia’s ratification of the amendment.

Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. appeared at both demonstrations, marching in organized fashion with signs, banners and matching black and red outfits.

The sorority made their presence known during the events, but African American women were not always in the forefront of the movement.

“We were one of the few African American participants in the Women’s Suffrage March,” said Anna Bradley, a member of the sorority, in the film. “They made us march in the back, because they were trying to appease white southerners. They didn’t really want a Black presence in the march, but we knew our day was coming.”

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the passing of the 19th Amendment, which granted women the right to vote in the U.S. In celebration of the centennial, the Virginia Museum of History & Culture, Virginia Public Media and Boedeker Films partnered to release the film on Thursday. Directed by Jeff Boedeker, it is available to stream on VPM’s Facebook page.

The film’s production was delayed at its halfway point due to COVID-19, which in turn pushed back its scheduled June release.

Writer and producer Laura McCann said the delay worked out with the help of Members of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. march to celebrate the ratification of the Equal Rights digitized historical records. Amendment in March. Film still courtesy of Boedeker Films

THURS. 8/20 ‘Mutts at Maymont’

This event allows attendees to bring well-behaved, leashed dogs to walk in the greenery of Maymont. There will be live music and food trucks for both humans and dogs, and attendees must register beforehand. For a complete list of rules and dog behavioral guidelines, visit the event’s Facebook page. For questions, email info@maymont.org or call 804-358-7166.

5:30-9 p.m., 1700 Hampton St. $10 per dog, free for humans.

SAT. 8/22 ‘Silent Summer Headphone Party’

Music will play through headphones as people dine at several restaurants within the area. All headphones will be provided and sanitized. For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page.

9-10 p.m., 17th Street Market, 100 NLETTER 17th St. $8-10.

TO THE EDITOR

Learn something

SAT. 8/22 Virtual painting tutorial

This event features a step-by-step lesson for painting on a pre-traced canvas. Participants with reserved spots will receive a kit with a canvas, brushes, paint, a reference photo and artist tips.

On the day of the class, participants will be emailed a Zoom login link. For more information, visit wineanddine.com.

8-10 p.m., online event, $25.

SAT. 8/22 ‘Fall Kitchen Gardens’

The Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden is hosting an online class on starting and maintaining kitchen gardens for the fall season. The session will cover crops that grow in cool weather, cleaning out gardens for the winter season and the appropriate times to harvest. The class equates to one credit toward the gardening and gardening design certificate program offered by Lewis Ginter. Registration is required. For more information, visit the event’s page.

9 to 10 a.m., online event, $24 for non-members.

Have suggestions for the events calendar? Contact spectrum@commonwealthtimes.org

10 The Commonwealth Times

Quote of the week

“Oppressed people cannot remain oppressed forever.

The yearning for freedom eventually manifests itself.”

— Martin Luther King Jr. TAGWA SHAMMET Opinions Editor This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

I am not here to attack you. I am not here to question you. I am simply here to understand.

Do you really think what you are doing to protesters is right? I find it difficult to believe that you see these people, fighting for their right to live, and think they deserve to be treated this way. The idea that they deserve to be beaten, tear gassed, arrested and assaulted simply because they have a purpose does not sit right with my soul.

I didn’t always see you all as the bad guys. I grew up respecting you. I saw cops as heroes; I understood them to be there as protectors and enforcers of what is meant to keep us safe.

Then, as time progressed and I aged, I started seeing how much you hated Black people, how much our lives didn’t matter to you, how easily you abused your power in order to hurt us — to kill us.

This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

Did you feel proud arresting those 17 people near Monroe Park on July 26? I’m not daft but I struggle to comprehend how you charged these protesters with an array of charges including, but not limited to: trespassing, rioting, possession of cocaine with the intent to distribute and so many other wildly false accusations.

You didn’t even let people leave the park once you demanded they go. Andrew Ringle, executive editor at The Commonwealth Times, has a video of you grabbing him as he tries to exit the park. Ringle is a good friend of mine. I was truly terrified and concerned as I watched you harass and attack him. And it’s not the first time you have come after him.

You also arrested my fellow peers who were

Illustration by Jayce Nguyen

RPD, do you feel proud?

VCU students and our SGA president-elect, Taylor Maloney. They are just students.

It’s one thing when people see the mess happening in Richmond; it’s another when you have to see your friends go through it.

Ringle wasn’t even there to protest. He is a respected member of the press. He is the one that gives you recognition should you do something right. But you’re not giving him much to work with.

This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

How come when Second Amendment defenders took to the street in January you didn’t ask them to clear the way? I can somehow rationalize the separation of your policing with your politics, but I can’t see how you truly believe the Black Lives Matter movement, our movement, is one of terror and mayhem.

You say that we are the inciters of violence, but I become a bit confused when I see you walking around with your weapons of mass

hysteria. Have you heard of the “weapons effect?” Leonard Berkowitz, professor of psychology at University of Wisconsin, said: “Guns not only permit violence, they can stimulate it as well.” Seeing your guns alone makes protesters feel unsafe. It insinuates that you are prepared to use violence on us should we not meet your expectations.

You’ll have to excuse the fear that strikes us when we see tear gas canisters and guns; it’s not a good time to be Black in America.

It never has been.

This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

I’m sure you’re wondering who I am or why you should care what I say. Well, my name is Tagwa Shammet. I am Black. I am Muslim. I am an immigrant. I am a woman. I am American. But, when people see me, they don’t see that last characteristic. They cannot comprehend that while my race, religion and gender might not fit the status quo, I am still

an American at the end of the day.

So, how do you think it feels to be me right now? I’ve been to protests. I’ve written stories.

I’ve donated both my time and money. I’ve educated myself and others. I’ve signed every petition I’ve seen. I’ve done my part. Yet, I still fear to walk around the city at night. I haven’t been in Richmond these past months, but as I’ve returned for my studies, I am beyond nervous. There is a possibility, now more than ever, that you’ll mistake me for one of these “rioters” and arrest me.

I want to be a lawyer. That’s right, I wantto uphold the law to the best of my capabilities as well. If you arrest me, you ruin my prospects of ever proving the negative stigma against me wrong.

This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

I get that tensions are high. But, isn’t that the problem?

We’re here today because your training hasn’t shown you how to deescalate situations without violence. You are stronger than me; more powerful with the backing of your weapons and the government. I am harmless.

Yet still, you attack me and protesters with chemical agents, rubber bullets and criminal charges.

We tried to have a conversation with you at the Monument, yet you refused to participate.

I didn’t realize water balloons were such weapons of mass destruction.

Why are you so afraid of me? Is it because you’re coming to realize that the message I’m trying to deliver is one that makes sense?

Black Lives Matter. I’m not saying yours don’t, I’m just reminding you that ours matter too.

This is a letter to the Richmond Police Department.

History is watching. Do you want to be on the wrong side of it?

Tea Time with Tagwa Go be a conservative in the corner TAGWA SHAMMET Opinions Editor

and terrorism. Forgive me if I lack sympathy for a Trump supporter.

Cox cited: “According to the National Tea timers, apparently it is so hard to be a Review, 73% of Republican students feel as if conservative student these days. It is so hard they have to hide their political views.” to voice your support of a man who preaches My father always taught me that the only racism and hate simply because he lives in reason people hide something is because the White House. It is so hard to flaunt they’ve done something wrong. If you feel your privilege of being in the majority. It is like you have to hide your political feelings, so hard to not have people agree with your perhaps you should revisit those views and political views. your personal biases, rather than blaming your Kaylee Cox, a student at James Madison liberal counterparts. Nobody has ever asked University, recently published an article conservatives to hide their views. You don’t in The Breeze discussing how “out of like being a part of the less popular view? place” she felt as a conservative student in Welcome to what it is like to be a minority. a predominantly liberal atmosphere. The You answer with uncomfortability. We article made me laugh. If Cox thinks JMU answer with our lives. is liberal, she should come and visit VCU’s Cox goes on to share her disappointment in campus for a change. Cox detailed feeling the diversity of thought on campus. She claims uncomfortable walking through campus that diversity is one of JMU’s core values — with President Donald Trump pins on her she must be talking about a different JMU, bag, and how most college professors tend because the one that I have been to is anything to be liberal. but diverse. It is anything but inclusive. See, I Hilarious. You feel uncomfortable walked through their “quad” and realized I was walking through campus with your one of only a handful of Black people and the Trump pins? I, a Black Muslim woman, only Hijabi in visual distance. So, this diversity felt uncomfortable walking through my Cox so desperately wants never really existed. predominantly white high school the day Just say you want more Trump supporters and your hero was elected. I, a Black Muslim go. This diversity you yearn for would’ve been woman, feel uncomfortable walking down nice when I was with a group of white boys on the streets during protests because your hero your campus, singing to Drake and everybody has labeled our movement as one of thugs but me said the N-word.

Conservative politics only have a negative stigma because conservatives around the nation have given it that. I am not to blame for the fact that Trump called Mexicans “rapists” or told people to grab women by their genitalia. I am not to blame for the fact that conservatives took to the streets, lynching dolls of President Barack Obama when he was elected. I am not to blame for the fact that conservative militias took up arms to respond to the Black Lives Matter movement. Instead of fighting liberals for having such views of conservatives, perhaps you should take your concerns to your party.

Cox said: “Even if you fundamentally disagree with others, it’s essential to find a common ground or sometimes, agree to disagree.”

We do not agree to disagree when you agree that the Black Lives Matter movement is one of violence. We do not agree to disagree when you agree that you have the right to another woman’s body. We do not agree to disagree when you agree that your right to bear arms is more important than my right to breathe. Let’s not agree to disagree.

One thing I do agree with Cox on is that people will not always see eye to eye when it

comes to politics. However, as a minority of many groups, I didn’t have the privilege to just realize that when I got to college. And I don’t have the privilege to whine about it.

That’s the tea.

Illustration by Karly Anderson

Wed. August 19, 2020 11

THE CT STAFF EXECUTIVE EDITOR Andrew Ringle ringlea@commonwealthtimes.org

Quaratine Socializing by Carleigh Ross

MANAGING EDITOR Hannah Eason easonhd@commonwealthtimes.org NEWS EDITOR Eduardo Acevedo news@commonwealthtimes.org SPORTS EDITOR Noah Fleischman sports@commonwealthtimes.org SPECTRUM EDITOR Iman Mekonen spectrum@commonwealthtimes.org OPINIONS EDITOR Tagwa Shammet opinions@commonwealthtimes.org PHOTO EDITOR Jon Mirador photography@commonwealthtimes.org AUDIENCE EDITOR Alexandra Zernik zernikal@commonwealthtimes.org ILLUSTRATIONS EDITOR Lauren Johnson illustrations@commonwealthtimes.org STAFF WRITERS Katharine DeRosa, News

RAMTASTIC by Sarah Brady

VCU STUDENT MEDIA CENTER DESIGN EDITOR Andy Caress designers@vcustudentmedia.com GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Jayce Nguyen designers@vcustudentmedia.com AD SALES ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Harrison Powers advertising@vcustudentmedia.com (804) 828-6629 WEB MANAGER Chranjitpandian Murugapandi web@vcustudentmedia.com DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Evan McGrady distribution@vcustudentmedia.com DIRECTOR Allison Bennett Dyche abdyche@vcu.edu (804) 827-1975 CREATIVE MEDIA MANAGER Mark Jeffries mjeffries@vcu.edu SALES & BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER Dominique Lee leeds3@vcu.edu (804) 827-1642

Late 2 Class by Lauren Johnson

OFFICE MANAGER Owen Martin martinso@vcu.edu

ABOUT THE CT The Commonwealth Times is the award-winning independent student newspaper at VCU, since 1969.

The CT staff maintains all editorial and operations discretion. There is absolutely no prior review by the public, university or VCU Student Media Center administration or staff. The Executive Editor writes and manages the Operations Budget.

ADD YOUR VOICE The opinions pages of the CT are a forum open to the public. Contributions are welcome by email to Tagwa Shammet, by mail or in-person at 817 W. Broad St., Richmond, VA 23220. Opinions expressed are those of individual columnists and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Commonwealth Times.

Unsigned editorials represent the collective opinion of The CT staff.

The Commonwealth Times strives for accuracy in gathering news. If you think we have made an error, please email the appropriate section editor.

Corrections will appear on the news pages and/or online. One CT per person. Additional copies can be purchased at the Student Media Center for $1 each.

16 The Commonwealth Times 12 The Commonwealth Times

For answers to this week’s puzzles, check commonwealthtimes.org/puzzles every Friday at noon.

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Contact Dominique leeds3@vcu.edu Sun d aAynC o rd L os gro eLee l ses@ sw Ti mePsu z z l e

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis Su nda y C r oLee s s@wleeds3@vcu.edu o r d P u zzl e Contact Dominique

ATTRACTING THE WRONG TYPE

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Sudoku Sudoku

Lo s A n g e l e s Ti me s

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

Flight of Fancy

by Pam Amick Sunda y C ro sKlawitter s w o rd P u z z l e Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis Attracting the Wrong Type by MaryEllen Uthlaut

Level

123 Pumpernickel grain

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Complete Complete the the gridgrid so each row, column, so each row, column, and 3-by-3 box and 3-by-3 box (in (in borders) containsSolution to Monday’s puzzle 1/15/19 boldbold borders) contains 1/15/19 every digit, 1 to 9. Solution to Monday’s puzzle every digit, 1 to 9.

Complete the For strategies on how Complete the grid so each row, For strategies on how grid so each and row, to solve Sudoku, visit column to solve Sudoku, visit column sudoku.org.uk 3-by-3and box sudoku.org.uk 3-by-3 (in bold box borders) (in bold borders) contains every contains every digit, 1 to 9. digit, 1 to 9.

For strategies For on strategies how to solve on how to solve Sudoku, visit sudoku.org.uk Sudoku, visit

sudoku.org.uk © 2019 The Mepham Group. Distributed © 2020byThe Mepham Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.

8/19/20

© 2019 The Mepham Group. Distributed by Tribune Tribune Content Agency. All rights reserved.

Complete the grid so each row, column and 3-by-3 box (in bold borders) contains every digit, 1 to 9. For strategies For advertising opportunities, on how to solve Sudoku, please visit call Dominique Lee @ (804) 827-1642 sudoku.org.uk

Solution or to email Tuesday’s puzzle

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